Hidden Emotions
by Supervenom123
Summary: It was just a normal day for Judy until things took a rather tragic turn. She doesn't know what to do or what to think, but she only has one question on her mind...Why?
1. Chapter 1: Answer!

The night was quiet, not a sound to be heard apart from the occasional car to whizz past the small bunny's large but delicate ears. This didn't bother her however, she was stuck in a deep slumber after the hard week of ZPD detective work. Nothing could wake her up with the lack of sleep she was trying to catch up on.

 ** _BZZZZP, BZZZP, BZZZZP…._**

Well, almost anything.

Judy slowly opened her eyes, wiping them lightly as her eyes adjusted to her surroundings. She turned to her side, nearly all her body covered by the manky blanket she had been stuck with for quite some time. Judy slammed her paw on the snooze button of the alarm, desperate not to hear more of its annoying sounds. She sighed lightly, lifting her upper body off the mattress and stretching her tired limbs, yawning in the process. ' _How the hell can it only be Thursday'_ she thought to herself, ' _Can't it just be Saturday already?'_ Judy knew she couldn't control what day it could or couldn't be, but it was nice to fantasise her day off. That was what usually kept her going through the ZPD on a bad week, just the thought of spending her day off examining the city of Zootopia, and not having to stress or worry of Chief Bogo constantly on her case. Plus, it was the day she could properly hang out with Nick. Sure they were partners in crime as of 6 months ago, but Saturday was really the only day they could spend time together without the need of police uniforms. She preferred Nick in his green Hawaiian shirt anyway, she thought it looked quite cute on him. Well….everything about Nick was borderline adorable, but the shirt just made him even more desirable in her opinion.

Shaking the thoughts of Nick out her mind she jumped out of bed and headed into the small bathroom provided in the apartment, turning on the shower. After a quick rinse, she hurriedly dried herself off and headed towards the sink, adjusting her fur and making herself presentable in any way she could. Once she was satisfied with her appearance, she walked to her closet and examined which one of the same outfits she wanted to wear. She settled on the fourth, purely because four was her lucky number. She finished off her look by pinning her badge to her chest, wiping it until a shine was visible. Judy surveyed her final image through the small reflection of her window that looked out into Zootopia. She smiled at the beauty of the city she was born to protect since she was just a kit.

"Right, time to stop wasting time, off to the ZPD!" She trilled cheerfully to herself before grabbing her phone, Taser and other necessary equipment she needed. She locked her apartment and threw the keys in her pocket as she headed off to work. With a rather cheesy song in her heart, she had a strong feeling today would be a good day.

Judy was only thirty minutes from the police department as a sudden realisation came to her mind. She hadn't text Nick since she woke up! Damn, how careless of her. Nick usually relied on Judy to wake her up for work, so the fact he hadn't text to tell her off or make some sort of snarky comment must have meant he was still asleep. She quickly pulled out her phone and clicked on Nick in her phone contacts:

{Hey Nick. Really hoping you're awake right now! Sorry this dumb bunny forgot to wake u up, I was so busy getting ready and thinking about work that I completely forgot! Don't b too mad, alright? :)}

She looked over the text before sending it, putting the phone back in her pocket. She expected her phone to buzz anytime soon with a response from Nick being the result of it. However even after the 30 minutes it took for her to reach the ZPD from her apartment she still didn't receive a response.

Odd, it isn't like him to take this long to respond to one of her texts.

She checked her messages quickly, just to check if he had seen it at least. Maybe he was just a little cross with her or maybe leaving her hanging like he enjoys doing sometimes.

No, he hadn't even seen it. The message had certainly been sent, why hadn't Nick even bothered to read it?

Soon after she had reached the entrance of the ZPD, Judy headed towards the reception desk, just so she could quickly check in with Clawhauser: "hey there Clawhauser! How are things?"

Clawhauser looked down, instantly recognising the feminine voice that was just out of his sight. "Judy! Great to see you on yet another beautiful day" he said, his voice slightly muffled with what seemed to be a donut he continued he continued to chew.

"Sure is a great day Clawhauser! Good to see you all cheery and full of energy!" she smiled at the oversized predator, before moving onto her next agenda. "Say, you wouldn't happen to know if there's a meeting soon with the officers, would you?"

"Hmmm….let me check." He looked down onto his computer, a huge grin still planted on his face as if the sides of his mouth were held up with invisible tape. "…Umm, yep! You have a meeting in about 20 minutes up in the briefing room as usual."

Judy smiled, nodding her head. "Excellent, thanks for letting me know!" she was just about to leave to get an early seat for the meeting until she stopped in her tracks, hopping back to Clawhauser. "Say, If Nick comes through here, could you tell him that I texted him? He hasn't even responded to me, I'm just….getting a little worried. Mind telling him for me, would you?"

Clawhauser saw no need for thinking time. "Sure thing Judy, I'll tell him as soon as I see him! Don't you worry about him, alright?" He gave Judy a re-assuring smile, Judy giving him the same response. Not worry about Nick? Clearly Clawhauser didn't know her well enough. Well, nobody but Nick and her family did to be fair. She did prefer to keep her private life away from those she worked with here at the ZPD, she didn't think they would really be bothered anyway. When here, she was only required to serve and protect the animals of Zootopia, no inner thoughts of hers were going to hinder her from doing this. She popped out her phone once more to check the time. 8:45am, 15 minutes till the meeting. There was still no notification that Nick had replied, bringing her worries back to the surface again. ' _I'm sure he's fine'_ She told herself, _'he probably just overslept and isn't waking up…at least, I hope that's the case.'_ She sighed lightly, texting Nick before she set her mind on the work that was sure to follow.

{Hey Nick, you better be awake! U know how cross Bogo can get if his officers r late. Hope you're doing ok and looking forward to seeing my fav partner! :3}

…

{xxx}

 **Hey guys! right, this is the first time I've ever written Fanfiction so this is kinda a bold step for me so x3. If you want to leave a review or any criticism, please do! I'm sure to have some mistakes somewhere on this first chapter so advice to help improve my work would be very much appreciated. :) Chapter 2 will be here probably before the end of this week, but I am busy with Drama and work so please forgive me if it runs a little late. Anyway, thanks for reading, see you in chapter 2!**


	2. Chapter 2: I'm Coming Over

{Nick, seriously where tf are you! You're 2 hours late, ur gonna lose yr job at this rate, get here quick!}

{Are you ignoring me? Have I said something to annoy you? Nick, please talk to me}

{Please}

{I really miss you Nick please text me, what's going on this isn't funny anymore}

Judy sighed as she scrolled through the mountain of texts she had sent to Nick throughout the day. Not one of them had gained a single response, hell even a view from him. What was going on with him today? Why was he ignoring her? Thoughts started to pour into her mind at the speed of knots, her head beginning to hurt as a result. Was his phone broken? Was Nick hurt? Did she hurt him? Did he….hate her? She shook her head, trying to rid of her thoughts. Of course Nick wouldn't hate her! She's done nothing to deserve it anyway. Judy decided to bring a little bit of logic to the situation, leaning against her swivel chair and putting the head of her carrot pen to her lips. Her case could wait, she'd been working hard for nearly 5 hours now.

 _'Right…Why would one of your best friends immediately stop talking to you? Plus, why wouldn't he turn up for work?'_ Judy closed her eyes, breathing deeply as her head began to somehow scroll through what seemed like an endless pit of ideas. ' _What if he broke his phone? No, he would be here for work to tell me. Dammit…'_ She took another deep breath. _'So he doesn't text and he doesn't show up for work…is he ill? That would certainly make sense as to why he couldn't be of contact! Wait…no, he would have at least called reception to say he was ill, and he would have text me to say so! Urgh! Maybe he just overslept? Pulled an all-nighter? No, that's ridiculous. He wouldn't pull something like that on a work nig-'_

"Busy, are we Hopps?"

Judy's ears twitched and jumped lightly at the sudden entrance, quickly leaning against her desk and looking up to where the voice originated from. It was Chief Bogo.

"O-Oh sir! Please forgive me!" Judy pleaded, "I was just a little lost in thought, and you know how things get! J-Just uh….really focusing on the case. You know how much I care for the cases I receive!" She chuckled nervously at the buffalo, receiving a small scowl as a response to her blatant lie.

"Well, don't you go dozing off too much Hopps, this case needs to be done by the end of the week. Also, have you seen Nick around? We haven't received a single call from him and he hasn't been seen all day around the department. Frankly I can't accept this level of lateness. I figured I should ask you because…after all, you know him better than any of us." Level of lateness? Clearly the Chief wasn't very good with his vocabulary. Judy shook her head, looking away from him as dark thoughts began to creep up on her again.

"No I haven't sir. Trust me, I've been trying to get in contact with him all day. I sent him at least seven texts today alone, and yet he hasn't even checked them….I'm worried about him. Do you think he'll be ok?"

Chief Bogo noticed the concern in her voice. He understood that Hopps really cared for Nick, they were almost inseparable when they were working to solve cases. He daren't get in their way once they got going. With Nick gone, Judy seemed completely sapped of life and energy. He had to admit, the fox did bring some much needed comic relief to the ZPD, even if sometimes his witty comments were unnecessary at points. He scratched the back of his neck awkwardly, nodding lightly at Judy. "Yeah, I'm sure he's fine…" A pause followed his comment, Bogo forcing a cough to break the silence. "….Anyway, I need to check on a few more of the officers. I'll give you an extra half an hour with the case and then I'll let you go. By what I can see, you look like you've worked extremely hard. You deserve a break." He smiled at his top officer and Judy smiled back at him, if somewhat forced on her side.

"Thanks sir. I'll do my best with the time I have left." She watched Chief Bogo close the door, leaving her by her lonesome. She sighed, banging her head on the table as her ears dropped, covering the case files. ' _I need to see him. Once work is over, I need to check what's up with him. I need to know if he is ok…"_ Listening to herself, she began to notice a pattern with her words. She _Needed_ Nick. Without Nick her office, the ZPD, heck even her desires to work seemed so…empty. That was the best way to describe it. She missed his teasing, his small but noticeable flirts he made towards her and the care he felt for her whenever her emotions were pushed over the edge. She needed someone like Nick in her life, to pick her up when she began to fall, to help carry her towards to the finish line if things became too much.

Judy sat up, grabbing and unclicking her pen. Her half an hour was work was done. She picked up her case file and placed her carrot pen in her back pocket. Tucking in her swivel chair, she exited her office and locked the door, throwing the keys back in her right pocket. She hurried down the spiral stairs that led down to the reception area of the department. Clawhauser was still there, chewing on yet more of his custard filled donuts. No surprise there then. She placed a constrained smile on her face as she hopped towards the reception desk. "Benjamin, got a case to hand in!"

Clawhauser licked his index finger as he turned towards the bunny, a wide grin appearing on his face as she approached. "Dawww, there's the bunny I love to see!" he beamed, clapping his hands in a childish yet adorable way. "Where would you like to me to place it, Miss Hopps?"

"'In Progress', if you could." She lifted the case file up to Clawhauser. "Umm…has Nick called in today?" she asked curiously, "Chief Bogo said he hasn't but I just wanted to make sure." Clawhauser grabbed the case off of Judy and placed it in the appropriate file, pushing his swivel chair to the other side of the reception desk to check his call history. Nothing of Nick was brought to his recollection, nor did the history contradict that.

"No, he hasn't. Sorry Miss Hopps. Has he not talked to you at all today then?"

Judy pulled out her phone, scrolling through her texts to Nick. She sniffled lightly. "N-No, not one….I'm off to go see him now. He doesn't live far, just a 10 minute bus drive from here." She ran a thumb over Nicks profile picture, staring at his cocky facial expression which just about brought a genuine smile to her face. "I really hope he's just ill…"

Clawhauser saw how emotional Judy was getting, attempting to find a solution to her upset. "….Hey, I know it's not much, but would you like my last custard donut? It's real yummy."

Judy looked back up at Clawhauser, giggling lightly at his way of making her feel better. To be fair, it did work for a short period of time. "No, I'm fine Clawhauser but….thanks for trying." She sighed again, closing her phone and placing it in her left pocket. "Look, I need to be heading off to see him. Catch you tomorrow?"

"Sure thing Miss Hopps! Hope Nick is alright. Tell him I said hi!" Clawhauser blurted, waving at Judy. She waved back, her fake smile fading as she walked further away from him.

{Nick, I'm coming over okay? Please tell me you're there. If not I'm not sure what I'll do. Xxx}

Turns out it took longer for Judy to reach Nicks apartment then first anticipated. Traffic jams were everywhere due to multiple accidents, so the bus had to take multiple alternate routes to get to her stop. What should have been at ten minute trip turned out to be a thirty minute one, which in turn did give her time to stare at her phone, eagerly hoping for some sort of response from Nick. Still, she received zilch. Judy would have called him but she'd run out of minutes. She spent nearly 100 minutes a day talking to Nick, and she only had 1000 minutes in her contract each month. She pretty much ran that over in the first 12 days, leaving her with only texts to communicate with him until the new month started. She gave up trying to text him when she was on the bus, as she came to the conclusion that there was no chance he was going to answer her on the phone.

When Judy finally reached the apartment she knocked on the door, not seeing a need to waste any time. "Nick, Its Judy. Open up you goof!"

No response.

She paused for a minute, awaiting a reply, or any type of movement from the other end of the door. Judy did possess his house key, god knows how many times Nick had lost his keys in the past. She kept a spare key of his apartment just in case he ever did lose his (which seemed to happen on a daily basis), so she did have a way of accessing his apartment if she decided to become desperate.

"…..Nick, are you there?" Her question was once again met with silence.

"Nick…..I'm coming in okay? Sorry if it's not an appropriate time but I need to see you." She pulled out her spare key, placing it in the lock and turning it. She stopped when she heard the door unlock and pulled down the handle of the door. "Nick, sorry to intrude. But I've been re-"

Judy's eyes widened as she saw what was in front of her. Her ears stood up on end as words struggled to leave her mouth. She tried to move but nothing occurred, tears beginning to well up as she stared at the scenario she saw before her. It took at least a minute before she covered her mouth, finally letting out an ear-shattering scream, tears streaming down her face as his name echoed down the hallway. Nick was in the middle of the room, the small light of his window revealing him dangling above the ground, swinging lightly with his neck tilted to the side, rope around his neck.

Nick Wilde had hung himself.

 **Well, There you go I guess. I would just like to say thank you to those who favorited, followed or left a review for my story, really pushed me to get this chapter done. The third chapter may take a bit more time, but it will come. hope to expect it by maybe Tuesday if I'm really late. Thanks for reading, see you in Chapter three.**


	3. Chapter 3: The Day Off

(1 week earlier)

"Nick, where are you taking me? This is kinda scary." Judy's eyes were blindfolded as she sat in the passenger seat of Nick's rundown and un-sanitary car. Nick had insisted she was to be blindfolded for the whole trip to a secret location, an idea she wasn't really a fan of from the outset.

Nick chuckled lightly at Judy's remark, looking down at the currently blind rabbit. "Aww, what's wrong Carrots? Don't trust me?" He smirked at the bunny, turning his head and keeping his eyes on the road. "You'll really like where we're going, not too far now.

Judy smiled up at him, unsure of his exact position in the driver's seat. "Oh? And what if I don't? Hmmmmm?" She giggled lightly at her own commentary, Nick kept himself from responding but instead smirking as he saw a small pothole approach his front left wheel.

Nick replied "Well then you're just a spoil sport." His smirk slowly faded, "Just a small bend here…" As he said this he swiftly jerked the wheel to the left, causing the car and Judy to jerk from side to side. Judy squealed a little at his action. "Woops. Sorry, pothole~."

Judy lifted her nose up towards him, clearly frustrated and slumped back in her seat. "Don't scare me like that! I will force you to turn this car around, and you know I will! If we die in this car, I will not to talk to you in the afterlife!" she folded her arms and turned her body away from him. At least, she thought she did. With the darkness over her eyes it was difficult to tell.

Nick replied to her in a make-believe sympathetic manner. "Daww, don't worry your cute little face about it! We're almost there, so stop with the grumpy face you~." Judy's ears drooped lightly, blood rushing to her cheeks. She didn't appreciate people calling her cute, it was usually something only bunnies would say to one another, and she made her position on the word very clear to Nick during their friendship. However, this doesn't mean she couldn't hide a blush whenever he brought it up.

"I'm expecting nothing less than amazing Nick." Nick refused to respond to her, just keeping a small smile on his face as he approached their destination. The car remained quiet for a few moments, the only sound emanating from the pair's breathing. Suddenly, Nick pushed his hind leg on the brake, Judy bouncing forward and forcing another high squeal from her. That pushed her over the edge, and she glared at Nick through her blindfold. "Nick, what the fuck did I say about you doing that!" She huffed loudly, scooting away from him as much as she was able to. "I don't care where we're going, I want to go back!" Her voice was bellowing, almost intimidating. "Take this bloody blindfold off me!"

Nick only snickered as he watched Judy's face turned a crimson red from her anger. "Alright Carrots, if you say so. But you're going to have to face me, I can't reach from there."

Judy gritted her teeth but reluctantly turned to face Nick.

"Other way sweetheart."

Judy blushed and scooted herself the other way, now sure she was facing Nick's direction. "Shut up. And don't call me a sweetheart" she replied. Nick chuckled as his white and tangerine coloured paws wrapped around the back of Judy's petite head, causing her to hide a small flush with one of her ears. Nick finally pulled up her blindfold, dropping it on the passenger seat.

Nick smiled brightly down at her. "Surprise, Carrots~."

* * *

 **BZZZZP, BZZZZP, BZZZZ-**

Judy slammed her paw down on the alarm clock, slowly lifting her eyelids and staring at the time. 7:30am. This gave Judy only one hour to get a hop on and head off to work.

It had been one month since the funeral of Nick Wilde. It was a pretty big funeral, many of the citizens using their spare time to pay their respects to the fox that had played a huge part in uncovering the mystery behind 'The Case of the Savages'. At least that's what the public like to call it anyway. A few of the members from the ZPD went up to speak a few words, including Chief Bogo and Clawhauser to name a few. Of course, Judy went up to speak of her time with Nick, but her words were hard to make out beneath the tears and shakiness of her voice. She had lost one of her greatest friends and there was no way of getting him back. He was gone.

Dead.

Judy followed her usual routine, washing herself and slipping on her uniform soon afterwards. She didn't bother tidying her face up, what was the point? She no longer had anyone to impress so why bother looking tidy? She pinned the Badge onto her chest without a second thought, grabbing her necessary gear and was about to head out until her mobile rang from inside her left pocket. She pulled out her phone and stared at who it might be. Secretly she wished it was call from Nick, so he could tell her it was a silly little joke and that he was waiting for her at the ZPD. But alas, it was just Clawhauser. Judy sighed deeply and pressed the green button, placing the phone next to her ear. "Hey Clawhauser."

"Hi Judy" came the voice from the other end. By how he was talking, Clawhauser didn't seem in the best of moods either. "Just ringing to tell you that, umm….you've been given the day off. The Chief has noticed the emotional stress you're going through and wants you to just have some time to yourself. He says it's for the best, so uhh…are you okay with that?" Judy smiled lightly at the consideration the Chief had given her. As much as he liked to make himself look like a strong bull at work, he had a very soft and understanding part of him. He did genuinely care for his officers, even if it was only when no one was watching. Her thoughts were interrupted by Clawhauser, concern seeping into his speech. "Judy, did you hear that? A-are you alright?!"

"Yeah, I'm fine! Sorry, I lost track of thought. Y-yeah, I'm fine with that. At least that gives me time to pull myself together…Tell the Chief that I'm grateful."

"Sure thing Judy" Clawhauser responded. "Looking forward for your return to work tomorrow. Do you have any plans for today then?"

"….Umm…I-I think so. Might get some food for the week while I have the time, maybe go watch some theatre? Something to take my mind off…..him". Just the very mention of his name would have brought Judy to tears, so she decided to keep herself from saying his name when talking to Clawhauser.

"Sounds like a plan. Well, make sure to enjoy yourself, alright?"

Judy nodded from the other side of the phone. "Will do. Try not to miss me" she said with a small giggle.

Clawhauser chuckled cutely back. "Pretty sure the whole department will fail that, Miss Hopps! Anyway, I need to be off. You know, reception work and stuff. Ill speak to you tomorrow!"

"Bye Benji! Speak soon!" Judy pulled the phone away from her ear and hurriedly changed out of her uniform and into her casual clothing. She then grabbed her phone and keys and locked the door, heading out of her apartment block.

{Hey Nicky. I'm coming over to see you. See ya in a bit. :)}

Judy soon arrived at the graveyard, holding a single rose in her paw that she picked from a nearby meadow. She searched around for his gravestone, and soon spotted him along a stone filled path. Judy hugged her arm as she came closer to his gravestone, standing only 2 feet away from him. She sniffled lightly as she placed a rose onto his grave that read: 'R.I.P Nick Wilde. May you never be forgotten for your hard work and determination. You were loved by many.' Judy sighed lightly, feeling herself well up as her eyes stayed fixed on his grave.

"Hey Nick. You been alright since I've been away?" she waited for a response, dying to hear Nick speak to her. Nothing emerged.

"…Things have been quiet since you've been gone. Zootopia just doesn't have the same….I don't know, vibe?" she giggled lightly at her own joke, a small tear appearing from her left eye. "Hehe…you know I'm not good at finding the right words to use. Guess some things don't change, huh?" she moved and sat down next to Nick, curling herself into a ball.

"…I was given a day off today. Chief Bogo thought I needed some time to myself. I know, c-crazy right? So I figured, why not visit my favourite person in all of Zootopia? It's the least I could do….I could have gone to watch theatre, so count yourself lucky!" Judy smiled lightly, leaning her head against his gravestone as she felt tears begin to stream down her face at a rapid pace. She closed her eyes as she began to cry quietly to herself, turning her head to cry against the side of Nick's tombstone.

"W-why….Why didn't y-you tell me a-about your….feelings?" she sniffled heavily, her eyes beginning to sore from her crying. "I could have h-helped…I n-never knew you felt this way, I….I…." She took a deep breath, wiping her eyes and whispered down to the cold piece of stone.

"…I-I miss you…so much..."

Judy sniffled and sat there quietly next to Nick for a few minutes, allowing herself to cry for a little while. She soon managed to get herself together, and stood up sniffling and wiping the tears away with her forearm. She smiled down at him, looking back out into the distance of the passing cars and the light reflecting from the windows of nearby Skyscrapers. "Well, I better be off. I-I have stuff I need to be doing. I'll catch up with you later, yeah? I promise to bring more than just a single rose as well…." She started to walk away, looking back one final time before Nick was away from her sight.

"….See you later Sweetheart."

 **Chapter three is done. This one took me so much longer to construct compared to the rest. hope you're all enjoying what I have to offer so far. Chapter 4 is already being worked on, ill try to get it done before or on Saturday. Feel free to leave a review if need be. :) see you then peeps.**


	4. Chapter 4: A New Case

Nick smiled brightly down at her. "Surprise, Carrots~".

Judy stared out of the windscreen, making out what was in front of her. At first, she could only see long strands of grass shooting above her line of sight, the sun casting a shadow over certain areas of Nick's vehicle. She looked to her left, only to find that they were in a generic and quite empty concrete car park. She shot Nick a glare, disappointed of his promise to an 'amazing' secret location. "Nick, where the fuck are we? You're really not meeting any expectations here." Judy wasn't in the mood to be messed around with, but this didn't stop Nick from having a small chuckle at her frustration.

"Calm down Carrots, you haven't seen all of it yet. Give it a chance, eh?" Nick pulled the car handle toward him, jumping out soon after. "Coming? I know you need to get out of the car, but a little exercise won't do you any harm, now will it?"

Judy frowned at him, slowly pulling the passenger door handle along with his request. The door remained shut. In anger she pulled it again, and again, and again. She pulled it intensely for a final time before letting go in anger, banging the passenger window. "Nick, the bloody door won't open! Get a better fucking car you…You…" Judy struggled to find the words. Her blood had been boiled so much that she was unable to think straight. Nick opened the passenger door not too far after her plead of anger, smiling calmly as she stood up and glared at him.

"Whoops, guess I forgot to take off child lock~" he chuckled lightly, swivelling the keys in his hand before shoving them in his pocket. "Finnick used to play with the doors so much when he had lots of energy, I had to put child lock on just so he wouldn't fall out of the car in excitement. I do apologise, Miss Hopps." He smirked, holding out his paw to help Judy out of the car. "Now if you wouldn't mind, I believe I have a location to show, do I not?"

Judy scowled at Nick, emotions stripped from her face. She hopped out of the car, ignoring Nicks offer to help. He could only smile at her as he jogged ahead of Judy, walking up a gravelled path close by the car park. "Smile for God's sake, Carrots. This is supposed to be fun!" Judy replied by lifting her face up to Nick and forcing a fake smile onto her face, distancing herself slightly from him.

"This better be good" she murmured bluntly towards him as they approached the tip of the gravelled path, noticing small patches of sand around her. "If you've pranked me, I will refuse to talk to you." Nick ignored her threat and pulled himself to the top, looking out into the distance as a light wind blew through his fur and green Hawaiian shirt. She couldn't help but blush lightly, admitting to herself that he did look kind of cute from this angle. What was he looking at anyway? What could he have wanted her to see so badly? She took her final step at the peak of the path, shielding her eyes from the blinding light of the sun. Her mouth gaped open, her eyes widening lightly.

They had arrived at the beach. The sea was a crystal clear shade of blue that stretched as far as the eye could see, the small waves crashing against the sand which sent a small but pleasurable chill up her spine. The sand was a gorgeous shade of yellow due to the sun that sat above them. As she gazed along the sides of the beach, she could see a small wooden pier that stood for the tourists to sit and admire the world around them. Not a single soul could be found wondering this beach, especially weird considering how beautiful the sight really was. Judy had trouble drinking in the views that she was sharing with her best friend, the hot sea breeze brushing against her as she began to feel quite upset of her previous rants against Nick. What Nick had said was true, it truly was amazing. No, more than that, outstanding. She had heard so many riveting things about the beach, but had never been to one due to her parent's obsession with keeping her safe from the water. But right now that didn't matter. Judy had so many things she wanted to say to Nick, but she was interrupted by Nick placing a paw on her shoulder, causing her to hide a small blush. He looked down at the crimson-cheeked bunny, peering down at her with his usual smirk. "So, did I do good? Have I lived up to your expectations, sweetheart~?"

Judy smirked back at him, punching him in the hip playfully. "Eh, the views are alright~" She exclaimed. "Depends on what you have planned now that we're here."

Nick bit his lip lightly, placing a finger on his lips. "Hmm…well, what about…"

* * *

The time was 9:50pm. Judy had just reached her apartment after a long and eventful day off from work. She yawned lightly into the back of her ear and closed the door, flinging her keys onto her desk and slumping onto her bed. She had gone to visit Nick today, which was a little more eventful then she first anticipated. After that, she did anything she could to take her mind off of him. She travelled to the cinema to view the latest film 'Batman vs Supergoat' (which to what she had seen didn't really live up to the hype), she bought herself a healthy Cubway sandwich for lunch and walked around Sahara Square, looking around the large variety of shops the area of the city had to offer. Judy couldn't lie, the sheer amount of things to do did make her forget about Nick, even if it was only was matter of minutes. Yes, she had quite a day indeed. But now that she was back in the comfort of her apartment she could let herself relax and scroll through her phone in peace. She decided to check her Furbook. Maybe someone had uploaded something worth reading?

' ** _He only thought he was giving money to a homeless guy. The result…I still can't believe it!_** '

That was a no then. Maybe Tweeter?

 ** _' kiwi_Kardashian posted: "OMG sometimes I hate being me ugh. #moneyproblems"'_**

She tapped out of the app, eager to get away from the rubbish that invaded her feed. She thought she would give TumFur a go. There was nothing else to go on, so why not right?

 ** _'If you don't reblog this post, I'm just gonna assume you don't have a heart'_**

She turned off her phone. Turns out noting new or interesting was happening at the moment. She placed the phone on her bedside table and switched on her lamp to a dim setting before laying her head on the pillow. She took a deep breath as she stared up at the ceiling of her apartment. She allowed herself to relax, closing her eyes and letting herself fall into a light slumber.

Her eyes shot up not so long after as her eyes broadened and pupils shrunk in horror. Images of Nick were flashing into her head, the view of him dangling from the rope was almost too unbearable for her as she began to tear up once more. The dead look in Nicks eyes, the colour that had drained from his fur and the rope swinging lightly from side to side due to the wind that was being emitted from the window. The tragic image was too much for Judy as she began to scream loudly with upset, lifting the pillow over her head to cover her screams of depression and the loneliness she was experiencing without him. Nick meant everything to her, and he was dead. She had repeated this several times to herself, but she still couldn't comprehend that she was never going to hear his smooth, silky voice again. She would never again hug him and vent to him when she was feeling down or hang around with him on their usual Saturday breaks. She could no longer call Nick and jokingly tell him how much she missed him, even though 90 percent of the time she really meant it. No more jokes, no more flirts, no more support and no more…Nick.

Her face was flooding with tears, stains of her emotion seeping into her pillow sheets. She didn't know what to do. Should she go to work tomorrow? Judy didn't want the ZPD to see her in this state, everyone might think she was being a drama queen and force her to move on. She couldn't go to work how she currently was, she just couldn't. Memories of Nick were going to affect her work rate and she couldn't afford that in the department. She wiped her tears away for the final time that day, as she stared at the tear stains she had made on her pillow.

 _'How am I going to get over you Nick? Why did you have to go…..Why? Tell me Nick, I need to know…'_ She sat up and sniffled, taking a deep breath to try and calm herself under the immense sadness she was going through. While she was doing this however, a question sprouted from the back of her mind.

 _'…Why? Why did Nick kill himself?'_

Her brain began to spiral out of control, the image of Nick and his suicide flashing in her head from time to time. Why did Nick….kill himself? Surely if he was upset, he would told her. He wouldn't keep this too himself, he knew Judy was always there to talk to if he was ever upset. What pushed him that much over the edge he saw no other option but to kill himself? Judy closed her eyes as she slowly began to enter her vastly un-organised mind, diving into her ideas and theories that were floating and swirling around her sub-conscious.

 _'Nick….You cared so much about me and the others way too much. You wouldn't abandon us without leaving us some sort of explanation…right? Just a text or a call, or even…a note. Did he leave a note? No note was found on the scene to my recollection. Did the police forget to investigate the scene?...No, that's ridiculous. They would surely look around his apartment for any clues, they would have been sure to find some sort of note. Plus, I would been notified of it due to Nick and me being so close. So, he didn't tell me about how he was feeling emotionally, and he didn't leave any note or text as to why he decided to kill himself….Then, why? There has to be a reason…There has to be…'_ Suddenly, a realisation came into her mind, her head beginning to hurt as a possible theory began to spring from her deductions. She couldn't think of it to be true, perhaps even ridiculous, far-fetched…But, it was still a possibility. _'Right…so he didn't leave a note, a text or even a call. He never told me about what was going on with his life…if that's the case, he has no motive. It wouldn't be like Nick to just get up and leave everyone he loves behind without a second thought. There is no reason for him to kill himself. If that's the case, then….Why? That wasn't a fake body I found, no way. They identified him as Nick at the hospital. Fingerprints, ID, everything. He's dead….but why is he dead? What….What if….What if he…."_

Judy awoke from her sleep like trance. She didn't have much evidence to her theory, but…it could still make sense. It might be impossible, it might be nowhere near the truth. But she still had to make sure. She needed to find out the truth. For her sake, for her sanity. For Nick. She reached for her phone, scrolling through her contacts and clicking on Benjamin's profile.

{Clawhauser, are you able to book a meeting with the Chief tomorrow? I need to set up a case.}

2 minutes later, she received a response. {Sure thing Judy, what about?}

{It's about Nick's suicide}

{…Nick? Are you sure? I'm sorry Judy, but it seems like an open and shut case, he was found in his room…}

{Yes, I know Clawhauser. But…What if the hanging didn't kill him?}

{Judy, what are you trying to say?}

{I know it sounds crazy, and I have nothing to prove it yet, but…}

{..But what? Spit it out Judy!}

{…}

{What if he was murdered?}

 **Well well well, 2 chapters in 2 days. Aren't you all lucky hmm? I had a lot of spare time today so I thought I should finish chapter 4 while I had the time :). The next chapter will take longer however to construct so...I don't know when that will be done. Maybe the end of the week? I promise to try my best. Anyway, thanks for reading and see you in chapter 5! :3**


	5. Chapter 5: 10 Days

Nick bit his lip lightly, placing a finger on his lips. "Hmm…well, what about…"

Judy kept her eyes on Nick as he pretended to plan out their next activity. Judy could always tell when Nick was being sincere or not, and now was definitely not one of these cases. Nick was the kind of fox to plan out every little detail of their outings, all the way down to where they would walk and where they would lay and enjoy each other's company. He was almost a control freak in that kind of way, but he played it off in such a magnificent style that it never seemed to bother Judy. He just always seemed to know what pleased her and what pissed her off, and enjoyed to play around with her whenever they spent time together. He could be quite an asshole at points sure, but he never pushed her too far that she decided to completely blank him. He was what the kids would call a 'player'. She didn't like to use that kind of word though, as she usually associated that word with someone who didn't care for the rules and just did whatever they desired. Nick wasn't like that. Not anymore.

Well, she really hoped that was the case. He was her police partner after all. He would never go back to his old ways….right?

"…udy….Judy….Judy!"

Judy suddenly snapped back to reality and shook her head, shooting her eyes back at Nick. "S-sorry! I was just a little lost in thought. You come up with a new activity then?"

Nick smirked down at the bunny. "Well Carrots, if you were listening I said we could head over to the pier and watch the sun go down." He looked out into the distance, seeing nothing but the beautiful golden sand and the sea reflecting the sun's rays. "It seems to be pretty barren, so I don't imagine anyone will kick us off the pier."

Judy smiled at his idea. It sounded very relaxing, very soothing as well. Just her and Nick, watching the sun go down and watching the stars emerge to form the night sky, sea just below their feet. It sounded so…romantic. "Sure, sounds great! Mind leading us the way, maestro?"

"Maestro? I forgot you never had good sense of vobular-oof!" his comment was met with a punch to his side, making him rub his pained area. "Well, that was just rude~"

Judy smirked, crackling her fist jokingly. "Then don't tease me about my choice of words, alright~?"

Nick kept himself from replying and instead started to walk towards the pier, wind brushing against him and Judy. Nick stuffed his hands in his pockets and stared out at the wooden and sturdy pier. He didn't know what Judy was truly thinking about them just sitting together to watch the sun fall away from sight, but he figured she would be a fan of it. In his honest opinion, Judy was truly the only animal in Zootopia he found…well, tolerable at the very least. She was calm and collected but wasn't afraid to stand her guard when required. This bunny could really look after herself when faced with danger, a trait he found quite cute. She had demonstrated this during their time together as police partners. The amount of times he had seen Judy come under fire, both mentally and physically was impressive. Very impressive. Their truly wasn't another woman like Judy out there in Zootopia, and that's what made her stand out from the crowd. Nick looked down at her Judy, a bright grin on her face as she stared out and strolled to the pier, not a single animal in sight. He smiled back down at her. Not going to lie, she looked gorgeous from this angle… His smile quickly faded, a blush emerging as he realised what was happening as they walked side by side along the path.

Nick was developing feelings for Judy. ' _Dammit.'_

* * *

"Murder?! Judy, I understand you're upset about the loss of Nick, but I'm afraid we just can't pursue this case!" Chief Bogo gazed down at his top officer, sitting up on his swivel chair.

Judy gazed back at him with anger, fists clenched. "Why not Chief?! The evidence doesn't stand up! Why would Nick suddenly….go? He didn't leave a note, a call, a text…don't you find that a little off?"

"The case was pretty clear" replied Bogo, "We found Nick in his room, hanging from the ceiling. We took him to the hospital but we were 5 hours too late. He had died from suffocation from the rope which was around his neck. There's no possible way a murder could have been committed." Chief Bogo talked with upset, but made sure to keep a stern look on his face to display his authority in the conversation.

Judy struggled for words. The Chief was right, it did seem impossible for a murder to occur with such strong evidence pointing to a suicide. "Chief, I see your point and I'm not disproving any of it. But…Something about this is just so…not him! Why would he want to end his life? We have no evidence, no motive! He had told me that clinically he was okay a couple of months before the…accident. Plus, he would never leave his work and the people he loved so much just like that. It's just not…Nick. You understand that, right sir?"

Bogo opened his mouth to reply, but no words escaped. It was now him who found trouble finding the words to reply to her. He thought for a little bit, considering her argument. It was true, Nick's character wasn't someone who would go and suddenly leave. Then again with most cases of suicide, it's usually the person you may never expect to have the deepest psychological problems. It could happen at any time without any explanation…Yet, with what Judy was saying to him, it did make him develop a gut feeling that something was not quite right with this case. He sighed lightly and placed his arms on the table. "…I do understand. I can see why you care so deeply as to finding out the truth. But we have plenty more cases to be dealing with right now, I can't just-"

"Sir, please. I need to find out the truth, even if it leads to the same conclusion. Please let me find out what happened to Nick, I can't…no, I won't accept that his death was of his doing. Something a lot more sinister is going on behind closed doors, I can feel it. Chief, give me the case. Please. Even if it's only for a week, I must find out the truth."

Chief Bogo was lost deep in thought over Judy's desire to follow the case. He could see how much this meant to her, even if he found no leads to any other way of death. He stood up from his desk and took a deep breath. "….Alright. I'll give you 10 days to solve this case. I may sound cruel and I apologise for this Miss Hopps, but we have other cases that need to be solved as well. You understand this, yes?" Judy nodded vigorously, urging to get the case started as her face lit up lightly from his approval. Chief Bogo sat back down, picking up a pen and paper from his desk. "Good. Now go, I suggest you don't waste any time. If the case is not solved in the 10 days, I will close it as a suicide." He pointed towards the door as he stared down at his paper. "The case will be downstairs at the reception desk. It will include an autopsy and pictures of the crime scene. Dismissed."

"O-Of course sir. I won't let you down!" She hopped off of her seat, opening and leaving Bogo's office, closing the door behind her. She took a sigh, happy to finally have approval from Bogo to investigate into Nick's case. She jogged downstairs, heading towards the reception desk and hoping to see her oversized friend running the scene. Surprisingly, that was not the case, just a regular wolf officer taking his place. Odd. _'Swore he said he was going to see me today. He must just be ill…_ ' She shrugged it off and walked to the desk, a bright smile implanted on her face. "Hey! Would you mind handing me case 'Nick Wilde' from behind the desk? I have a mystery that needs to be solved." The receptionist nodded, reaching under his desk and handing the case over to Judy. She stared down at the case, scared of its contents. She turned away and walked to the entrance of the ZPD. She took a deep inhale of the fresh city air and she stared into the blue sky that surrounded her view. She started to walk towards the bus station, case in her left paw. She didn't need to see the contents to know that the first place that needed investigating was his apartment.

"…This is for you, Nick. I'm going to find the truth, I know I will…Hang in there, partner."

* * *

"Hello? Look, we may have a problem. Judy Hopps knows something is up…well, you know what she's like, she won't stop until she finds answers….Yep…I see….Alright, I'll see what I can do."

 **Well, this took way longer to do then expected. But 3 drafts later and here you are! I missed the end week deadline, so will this do? :) Chapter 6 will take a little while now that I'm back at school, so ill see when I can get it done. In the meantime, I am writing a few drabbles of WildeHopps for all you shippers out there, so ill make sure to update with a link when that's done ;3. See you in chapter 6!**


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